Construction spending went up in August

Total construction spending went up 0.4 percent between July and August to $812 billion. This rise was driven by increases in public construction activity, including stimulus and base realignment projects, according to an analysis of new Census Bureau data released by the Associated General Contractors of America.

Association officials cautioned, however, that private residential and nonresidential spending both continued to shrink as private-sector demand for construction remains weak.

Private residential construction dropped 1.7 percent during the past year, while private nonresidential spending dropped 24 percent. All 11 categories of private nonresidential construction in the Census Bureau’s press release had declined from a year earlier, most by double-digit percentages.